We will be there in mid July. I’d like 1-2 recommendations in Montalcino and 1-2 in montepulciano. I’ve had friends visit Altesino and they liked it. Avignonesi seems like a big one in Montepulciano.
And if there are any standouts in general for Chianti Classico that would be great too. We are also interested in places that have good olive oil as well
Restaurant recommendations welcome as well. Do they allow BYOB there?
Hi Prashant
I’ll let others recommend good visits at Montalcino.
For Montepulciano it depends whether you’ll have a car, in which case you might even avoid the town itself (it’s a shame as it has good history / feel but it’s all about relative priorities). If you don’t have a car, plan to arrive by bus rather than train, because Stazione Montepulciano is miles out of town, indeed Chianciamo Terme is a better train option, as the coaches are more frequent to Montepulciano itself.
Montepulciano is relatively rare in Italy (though some places in the wider Chianti region are similar) in that they mostly operate cellar doors, or at least tasting rooms, so a visitor can just pop in, taste a few wines, buy some if desired and/or move on to the next. Personally I enjoy this much less, as I enjoy the more personal approach in making an appointment. However if on a tight timescale and looking to taste quite a bit, then this might very much appeal. There are plenty in walking distance.
What would I recommend?
If you have a car, I really enjoyed Daviddi, a small family producer out towards Stazione Montepulciano / at the back of Poliziano. Indeed tasting at both gives a very educational comparison of big famous producer vs. small family operation. There is a charge for the tasting at Poliziano, but actually if going there I’d recommend trading up to have the tasting plus the decent buffet-style food, which allows you to try the wines against food, not just in isolation. Avignonesi are the other side of Stazione Montepulciano, even further from town. I very much prefer them to Poliziano and a friend who visited over a decade ago enjoyed the visit (on an Arblaster & Clarke tour). Not cheap, but the Grande Annate is very good indeed. Their Vin Santo is exceptional, hideously expensive, but having had a sip at a tasting a few years ago, horrifyingly decent value for money!
If you don’t have a car, plenty of good places in the centre, but easy enough to just stroll. A favourite -again quite under the radar - are Crociani. These are very true to the regional style, with the capability to age, though I rather enjoy them at 10-12 years old. Contucci I’ve not been to, but if returning I would, being positively ancient in their history, very much focused on visitors / selling direct, yet by all accounts better quality that one might assume for such an operation. Dei also in the town IIRC and well worth a tasting.
No point in pursuing BYO, as Italian restaurant markups aren’t often rapacious (there are exceptions mind!). Quite often in wine regions, it’s just a handful of euros markup on a wine that is ~ €20 at the cellar door. You’re also getting wine that matches the food. If however the reason for asking is that you want to drink some of the bottles you buy, I’ll put two suggestions forward:
Stay in an apartment, either AirB&B or similar, or in Montepulciano I can recommend one long enjoyed by forumites on a travel forum I post on, Politian Apartments. Ours was really classy in its furnishing, yet fully equipped, indeed it had a couple of electrical appliances that aren’t commonly seen in Italian homes, so they’d gone the extra mile to help make guests feel at home. The only thing missing is a TV, because the owner is embarrassed by Italian TV. Whilst on the whole I understand his sentiment, it did mean we missed out of a long-established favourite early evening TV programme called L’Eredita, a game show mostly focused around words plus some quiz questions, which really helps my language skills.
Use Gastronomie, Alimentari, panetterie & other specialist food shops (or supermarket if you must) to make a picnic. Then take that and a corkscrew & some cheap glasses found in a local homeware shop to a place marked as a scenic spot, and enjoy the wine in a simple setting. There is great food to be had in these food shops and a picnic is one way to get access to it.
Restaurants in Montepulciano?
Down near San Biagio church
*La Grotta - Localita’ San Biagio, 15, Phone: 0578 757607 closed wed, was really rather classy and showed no signs of being fat, dumb and happy on the easy access to tourists. Very good food and service in a very pleasing setting. The walk back up to Montepulciano will definitely help work off some of the meal, but if you have a car, you can park up here.
In town, but nicely away from the centre, making this good solid place a little ‘under the radar’
Hope this helps
regards
Ian
There is one “MUST VISIT” in Chianti Classico - Casa Emma: They have a range of wines from rose - Merlot as well as Chianti, Chianti Classico, and a stellar Reserva (Their oil & Balsamico are also stellar) of all the places we visited…only one other in Tuscany topped this. That was
Poggio di Sotto in Montalcino. This was one of the BEST winery visits we had in Italy. On top of that, their prices are a fraction of what they sell for here in the US. If you’re interested in visiting these two wineries I’d be happy to share my contacts…just drop me a PM. If you have ANY down time…I’d make a reservation at Cum Quimbus in San Gimignano. They were the second best restaurant we ate at…Piazza Duomo was the best.
Go to Antinori. Huge and Napa styled but a great tour and spend the bucks for lunch. Expensive but you get to try pretty much everything they make.
Felsina and Fontodi are well worth it. You need an appointment. IMO, the best in Chianti. Haven’t been to Casa Emma but that sounds like a good idea too.
Poliziano in Montepulciano.
Food:
Second the Cum Quimbus in san Gimignano. Awesome food and wine list. You NEED a reservation.
Ristorante Albergaccio di Castellina in Castellina is great.
Osteria Le Logge in Sienna. Ask to see the Wine Cellar (down the block)
+1 Felsina. Last year in Chianti Classico we visited Poggio Amorelli. You can make an appointment to have lunch while you are wine tasting. Saint Agnese Farm is also a cooking school and makes a great Balsamic vinegar. We had lunch there and their lasagna was one of the best we have enjoyed. We hired a car and driver who was very good. Alessandro Demi + 39 338 3154347 demi.Alessandria@alice.it .
Here are some of the photos from Cum Quibus.
Went to Tuscany two years ago.
My GF and I rented a car from Florence, and after a quick day strolling through Siena, stayed at a nice agriturismo about 2 miles from the center of Montepulciano. The only official tasting was at Poliziano. A nice estate with decent+ wines. We then walked around town one day and popped into several tasting rooms. The town itself is very impressive, especially driving in and seeing the hillside location. Couldn’t help but think of the long history there.
One of the days we drove the 50 minutes or so over to Montalcino. What a beautiful drive- those rolling hills are epic! Our only tasting was at Poggio Antico, where they had a nice lineup of Brunello’s and Super Tuscan’s. For sure worth a visit! The town of Montalcino was nice as well. We enjoyed a tasty lunch and wandering around, searching out BdM’s in the multiple mom and pop wine stores. When we go back there next year, we will visit Fuligni, Pertimali, and Conti Costanti. Those are all superb Brunello’s and might be worth inquiring into a visit.
Some very good friends just went to this farm/winery. Family owned, they raise their own pigs for their cured meats, etc. They make a great under the radar Chianti and Chianti Riserva, and also a superb Super Tuscan. This would likely be a more relaxing visit and less commercial than some others.
Monsanto. Classic. Il Poggio Riserva is one of the great wines of Italy, IMHO.
Awesome advice everyone! Ian, we will have a car so I’ll take your advice in hand. We are looking forward to the trip.
We are staying in Castello Montegufoni about 22 miles sw of Florence. Nearest town is Montespertoli.